Check out the worksheet we developed to help you start the process of unpacking dominant narratives that inform and surround your work.
I avoided calling myself a narrative strategist for years.
I’ve been doing this work since the 1900s. No, really. For nearly three decades, I’ve worked at the intersection of communications, movement building, and strategy. And yet, for much of that time, I hesitated to think of myself as a “narrative strategist.”
Why? Because I wasn’t sure I had the right credentials. I don’t have a master’s degree. I wasn’t trained in neuroscience or linguistics. I didn’t learn narrative in a classroom.
I don’t have a master’s degree, but I’ve had to master a lot on the fly.
I learned by doing. I’ve spent years steeped in story and strategy, working alongside organizers, culture-makers, and communicators who know how powerful narrative can be. Still, I looked around at how the field was evolving and thought, maybe I’m not “qualified” to call myself a narrative strategist.
But I’ve come to see that hesitation for what it was: internalized gatekeeping. And I’m calling it out.
Reminder: the “experts” don’t own narrative.
Over the past decade, I’ve watched the rise of what I now think of as the narrative industrial complex. It’s a world where foundations, institutions, and consultants have professionalized the concept of narrative into a field that can feel highly academic, jargon-heavy, and inaccessible.
All of this can overcomplicate something that is, at its core, deeply human.
Narrative is a human experience, not an academic exercise.
If you’ve ever felt like narrative strategy was something only the “experts” could do, you’re not alone. But that idea is part of the problem.
Narrative is intuitive, human, and strategic.
Here’s the truth: you already know how to “do” narrative.
We all do. It’s how we make meaning. It’s how we understand ourselves and our communities. It’s how we decide what is right, what is fair, what is possible.
We are swimming in narrative all the time. Like a fish in water, we may not always be conscious of it, but it shapes everything around us. Our personal beliefs. Our policy landscapes. Our culture. Our sense of what’s normal or acceptable.
You don’t need a degree to recognize that. You need awareness, intention, and community. And maybe a little permission to trust your gut.
Free Worksheet: Getting Started With Narrative Check out the worksheet we developed to help you start the process of unpacking dominant narratives that inform and surround your work. |
The NOTION of narrative is overhyped, but the WORK of narrative is vital.
Let’s be clear. Narrative is not a buzzword. It is not a brand exercise. It is the terrain we are navigating as we work to build a more just world.
Narratives don’t simply exist. They are made. Crafted. Repeated. Reinforced. Spread through stories, systems, culture, and policy.
Dominant narratives uphold dominant power structures. They shape what people believe is normal or inevitable, and they justify injustice with a convincing story.
So if we are trying to change the world, we must also change the story.
Narrative is not neutral. It is a terrain of power.
Contesting for narrative is about contesting for meaning, for vision, for belonging. If we don’t engage, we leave that terrain in the hands of those who are already using it to maintain the status quo.
Narrative strategy belongs to all of us who are working to shift power and build toward justice.
Trust your lived experience.
If you’ve hesitated to call yourself a narrative strategist because you felt like you weren’t trained enough, academic enough, or theoretical enough, I want to tell you what I wish someone had told me earlier:
You are already doing this work.
Your lived experience matters. Your instincts matter. Your voice matters.
Start where you are.
We don’t need to wait for an invitation to shape the story. We’ve always been part of it. Let’s claim that. Let’s build narrative power grounded in humanity, sharpened through practice, and focused on transformation.
And if you’re looking for a straightforward, intuitive place to begin, try our simple tool to help you get beyond the buzzwords and develop a greater understanding of the narratives you’re navigating in your own work.
Because the work of narrative change is not just important. It’s essential.
Holly Minch, Founding Partner at LightBox Collaborative, thinks the work of shaping narrative could use more real talk. If you’re already doing narrative work (and you probably are), let’s name it, strengthen it, and build real power. Get in touch: holly@lightboxcollaborative.com